Blackmagic Video Assist User manual

October 2020

Installation and Operation Manual

Blackmagic

Video Assist

English, 日本語, Français, Deutsch, Español, 中文,

한국어, Русский, Italiano, Português and Türkçe.

Languages

To go directly to your preferred language, simply click on the hyperlinks listed in the

contents below.

English 3

日本語 94

Français 186

Deutsch 278

Español 370

中文 462

한국어 554

Русский 646

Italiano 738

Português 830

Türkçe 922

English

Welcome!

Thank you for purchasing your Blackmagic Video Assist.

In 2015 we launched the original Blackmagic Video Assist to help you shoot better quality video on

any type of camera. We are now excited to introduce Blackmagic Video Assist 12G HDR to the video

assist family!

We are extremely excited to have designed the Blackmagic Video Assist family of products. We

think they are the perfect solution to help you shoot better video on any type of camera. Your video

assist combines the best of our monitoring and recording technologies for on set monitoring and

professional recording into easy to use very compact products.

Blackmagic Video Assist models can be mounted on your camera, or on a desk for general deck

and monitoring use. That’s perfect for use as a master recorder for a live production switcher like

ATEM Mini.

3G-SDI and 12G-SDI inputs let you monitor HD or Ultra HD on high quality LCD screens including HDR

on 12G models. With up to 2,500 nits, the HDR displays can be seen even in bright sunlight.

You can record on fast SD cards including dual card slots on the 7” models for continuous recording.

Your video assist is a very versatile monitor and recorder you can use with any camera on any project.

This instruction manual contains all the information you need to start using your

Blackmagic Video Assist.

Please check the support page on our website at www.blackmagicdesign.com for the latest version

of this manual and for updates to your video assist’s software. Keeping your software up to date

will ensure you get all the latest features! When downloading software, please register with your

information so we can keep you updated when new software is released. We are continually working

on new features and improvements, so we would love to hear from you!

Grant Petty

CEO Blackmagic Design

Contents

Blackmagic Video Assist

Getting Started 5

Plugging in Power 5

Plugging in Video 7

Plugging in Audio 7

Inserting SD Cards 7

Recording 8

Remote Control via the LANC Connector 9

Continuous Recording 9

Recording Clean HDMI

from DSLR Cameras 10

Playback 10

Looping playback 11

Changing Settings 11

Using the Touchscreen 11

Blackmagic Video Assist

Settings and Features 13

Audio 31

Menu Settings 33

Entering Metadata 37

Digital Slate 37

Recording Blackmagic RAW

on Video Assist 12G HDR 42

Connecting your camera to

Video Assist 12G HDR 42

Blackmagic RAW 44

Recording to Blackmagic RAW 44

Storage Media 47

Choosing a Fast SD Card 47

Choosing a USB-C Flash Disk 48

Formatting Storage Media

using your Video Assist 48

Formatting Media using a Computer 50

Working with Files from SD Cards 51

Checking Disk Speed 52

Using Video Assist as a Webcam 53

Setting the Webcam Source 53

Using Open Broadcaster 53

Blackmagic Video Assist Setup 55

Updating the Internal Software 55

Using DaVinci Resolve 57

Project Manager 57

Editing with the Cut Page 58

Adding Clips to the Timeline 61

Editing Clips on the Timeline 62

Adding Titles 62

Working with Blackmagic RAW Files 63

Color Correcting your Clips

with the Color Page 67

Adding a Power Window 70

Using Plugins 72

Mixing Your Audio 72

Adding VFX and Compositing

on the Fusion Page 77

Mastering Your Edit 86

Quick Export 86

The Deliver Page 87

Post Production Workflow 87

Working with 3rd Party Software 87

Using Final Cut Pro X 88

Using Avid Media Composer 2018 88

Using Adobe Premiere Pro CC 89

Help 90

Regulatory Notices 91

Safety Information 92

Warranty 93

Getting Started

This section shows you how to get started including:

■

Plugging in Power

■

Plugging in Video

■

Plugging in Audio

■

Inserting SD cards

Plugging in Power

Getting started with your Blackmagic Video Assist is as simple as plugging in power,

connecting your video source, plugging in your audio and inserting an SD card.

To supply power, plug in the supplied power adapter to your video assist’s power input on

the right side panel. On the 12G models, you can secure the connector to the video assist to

prevent accidental disconnection.

To power on the unit, press the power button on the right side panel. Press and

hold to power off.

Connect external power to the +12V power input.

Press the power button to turn the unit on.

TIP The supplied power cable included with Blackmagic Video Assist 12G HDR

features a locking connector to prevent disconnection, but you can also use any 36W

12V power cable to power the video assist.

You can also power your video assist using Sony L-series batteries that are very common

andcan be purchased in a variety of capacities.

5Getting Started

Insert the battery into the slot and slide down until it clicks into place. To remove,

press and hold the button above the battery and slide the battery out

Charging your Batteries

L-series batteries are very common and used in a variety of video equipment. This also

means there is a wide variety of chargers you can use to recharge your batteries.

These include a wall plug style charger with a single battery slot, or dual slot models

with an LCD screen that displays the charge status of your batteries. When selecting a

battery charger, it’s important to make sure it fits into your production workflow. For

example, some chargers are powered via USB so are convenient for when you are on

the go. Other chargers are mains powered so will suit studio and office locations.

The first time you power up your Blackmagic Video Assist you will be prompted to select

your language from the 11 available options. Tap on your selected language and then tap

‘update’. You can change your language settings at any time using the ‘setup’ tab of the

dashboard menu.

6Getting Started

Plugging in Video

The next step is to plug your SDI or HDMI source videointo the MiniBNC, BNC or HDMIinput.

Mini BNC to regular BNC cables can be purchased from your nearest professional video

equipment stores.

Left Side Panel Right Side Panel

Connect your source video

to the SDI or HDMI input

on the left side. Connect

an HDMITV or SDI

monitor by plugging into

the HDMI or SDI output.

You can listen to the audio

via the built in speaker, or

by plugging headphones

into the headphones

jack. The speaker will be

muted during recording

and monitoring.

Plugging in Audio

When plugging in your video, audio is also connected as it’s embedded in the SDI or

HDMI video signal. However, 7” video assist models also have built in mini XLR connectors so

you can plug in external balanced analog audio as well.

NOTE On the 7” video assist model, you can set the audio settings to record

analog channels 1 and 2, orchoose one channel analog audio and one channel SDI

or HDMI audio, depending on your source video. For more information about analog

audio andadjusting levels refer to the ‘audio’ section later in this manual.

Inserting SD Cards

To start recording clips, first insert a compatible SD card.

For high quality HD recording, we recommend high speed UHS-I SD cards. However, if you are

recording standard definition or lower bit rate, lower quality compression you might be able to

use slower cards. Generally, the faster the cards the better.

If you are recording Ultra HD, then we recommend high speed UHS-II type SD cards.

For Blackmagic Video Assist 12G HDR these cards need to be capable of write speeds above

224MB/s for recording up to ProRes HQ Ultra HD 2160p60.

The 7” video assist models also have two SD card slots. You can record to either one, or insert

two SD cards for continuous recording or fast media change overs.

Before using your cards, you will need to format them to either HFS+ or exFATformats. It’s easy

to format your media via the ‘storage’ settings. For information on formatting, refer to the

‘storage media’ section for more later in this manual.

7Getting Started

To start recording you’ll need to insert an HFS+ or exFAT formatted UHS-I or UHS-II SD card.

You can easily format your SDcard using the ‘storage’ settings in the touchscreen menu.

That’s all there is to getting started. With power, video and a formatted SD card you can now

start recording!

Recording

To start recording straight away, simply tap the circular ‘record’ icon at the bottom of the LCD.

Tap the stop icon to stop recording.

The timecode display in the upper toolbar will illuminate red while recording

Clips can be recorded using AppleProRes and Avid DNx codecs.

You can also set your video assist to use ‘timecode’ or ‘SDI/HDMI start/stop’ trigger recording.

TIP When the upper and lower toolbars are hidden on your 5” video assist, a small

record indicator will be displayed at the bottom of the LCD so you can easily confirm

you’re recording. Swiping the screen up or down brings the toolbars back in view.

8Recording

On 5” video assist models, swipe the screen up or down to

reveal or hide the toolbars.

NOTE When recording from an HDMI or SDI camera, make sure the output is clean

with overlays turned off as any overlays that are present in your camera’s video output

will be recorded with your image. Please refer to the section titled ‘recording clean

HDMI from DSLR cameras’ for more information.

Remote Control via the LANC Connector

On 7” video assist models you can start and stop recording remotely using an external

LANC controller. Simply plug the LANC controller into the 2.5mm LANC input on the right side

of the unit.

Continuous Recording

7” video assist models support continuous recording when using more than one card, or on an

external drive for 12G video assist models via the USB-C port. If you are recording an important

event and you don’t want to stop recording, simply insert a second SD card or connect an

external drive. Once your current card or drive is full, the recording will automatically spill over

to the next slot. There will be no frames dropped in the process. For example, ifthe first

segment on card 1 stopped at 00:40:01:00, the recording on the second card will start

at 00:40:01:01.

When editing your clips on the timeline, simply place the second clip against the tail of the

firstand they will play through the recording as if it is one complete clip.

Having an additional card or drive connected also lets you quickly change media. If you want to

switch to another card or the active drive, simply hold down the ‘record’ button. The recording

will spill over to the next available slot without missing a frame. Now you can remove the first

card or drive and start using the media right away!

TIP For continuous recording or fast slot change overs, make sure your cards are

formatted before you start your recording. You can format your SD card or external

drive while recording on another slot, simply tap on the storage indicators to reveal

the storage settings. See the ‘storage media’ section later in this manual for

further information on formatting.

9Recording

Recording Clean HDMI from DSLR Cameras

Some DSLR cameras record 8-bit video internally, and some can provide a clean video image

via their HDMI output. By plugging the DSLR camera’s HDMI output into your video assist, you

can bypass the camera’s internal compression and record using high quality 10-bit ProRes or

Avid DNx codecs. Some DSLR cameras can output 10-bit 4:2:2, which is higher quality video

than their internally recorded 8-bit 4:2:0 compression.

Many DSLR cameras are also limited to short recording durations, so an added benefit of

recording externally is bypassing these recording limitations. This is particularly helpful when

recording live events or interviews for documentaries.

To make the most of this feature, you will need to set your camera to output a clean image with

overlays turned off. This is normally done by changing your DSLR camera’s HDMI output

settings so it does not show any status information in the video signal. This is important

because if there are any overlays visible in your image via the HDMI output they will be

recorded in your video, which you probably don’t want.

To check the DSLR camera overlays are not visible:

1 Swipe the touchscreen up or down to hide the on screen meters so you can monitor

only your DSLR camera’s image. On 7” video assist models the upper toolbar at the top

of the LCD is independent and separate from the image. This means you can monitor

the entire image cleanly and still have the upper toolbar visible.

2 With the on screen meters hidden, carefully check the DSLR camera’s output video

does not show any information other than your clean video image. If you can see

camera overlays on your video assist’s LCD, change the HDMI output or display menu

settings on your camera so HDMI overlays are turned off.

With a clean HDMI output from your camera you can now record better quality video!

Playback

The transport controls can be found on the lower toolbar. If your lower toolbar is hidden from

view, simply swipe the screen up or down to reveal it.

Play

To play your clips, tap the ‘play’ icon.

Stop

During playback, tap the ‘stop or ‘pause’ icon to momentarily ‘freeze’

playback on a frame of video.

Skip

You can skip backwards or forwards through your clips by repeatedly

tapping the forward or reverse skip icons. Tapping reverse skip once

will restart the current clip.

Shuttle

Hold down one of the skip buttons to change into shuttle mode.

Now you can fast forward or rewind by tapping either shuttle button

through speeds from x1/2 to x50. Press the stop or play button to

revert the buttons back to skip mode.

10Playback

TIP Scrub clips forwards or backwards by dragging the scrubbing slider left orright,

or by swiping the screen to jog through thevideo.

Jog forwards or backwards by swiping the video left or right.

You can choose to display skip buttons or the histogram in the lower toolbar. When the ‘display

histogram’ option in the setup tab of the dashboard menu is switched ‘on’, only the ‘record’,

‘play’ and ‘stop’ buttons will be visible.

Looping playback

Loop

Once your clip is playing, press the ‘play’ button again to set

your video assist to play the current clip on a continuous loop.

Loop all

Tap ‘play’ again to play all your recorded clips on a continuous loop.

Play

Tap again to return to real time playback.

Changing Settings

Using the Touchscreen

All video assist models come with a great range of features and user adjustable settings.

The main display features upper and lower toolbars. The upper toolbar provides access to

monitor overlays, codec, format, source settings, scopes and the dashboard menu, as well as a

timecode display and battery status indicators.

11Changing Settings

The lower toolbar includes transport controls, storage indicators and audio meters. A display

histogram can also be turned on via the menu to appear over the skip buttons on the lower left

of the toolbar.

TIP Both toolbars on the 5” video assist models can be removed from view by

swiping the screen up or down. On the 7” models, the upper toolbar will remain in

view at all times.

The tabbed dashboard menu is accessed via the settings icon on the upper toolbar and

features record, monitor, setup, and LUTs tabs. The 7” models also include an audio tab so you

can access the additional XLR channel input settings.

Navigate between the pages by swiping from left

to right or tapping the arrows on either side

Each menu tab features two or more pages of options you can navigate by swiping the screen

left or right, or by tapping the arrows on either side. When selecting the codec or source icons

in the upper toolbar, you will open up the record tab of the menu.

12Changing Settings

Blackmagic Video Assist Settings and Features

Your video assist displays overlays on the LCD to help with exposure, focus, composition and

framing when connected to a camera.

These settings can be accessed via the ‘monitor overlay’ icon in the top left corner of your

video assist. You can also use the ‘monitor’ tab of the dashboard menu to toggle these settings

on or off individually, or disable them all by selecting ‘clean feed’.

Disable all overlays by selecting clean feed

Zebra

The zebra feature helps you achieve optimum exposure by displaying diagonal lines over areas

of the video that exceed your set zebra level. For example, if you set the zebra level to 100%,

you’ll know that any area of the image displaying the zebra pattern will be clipped. If you set the

zebra to 90%, you can feel confident that you have some extra exposure headroom to protect

the highlights in your shot.

Zebra controls on Blackmagic Video Assist

TIP You can also set the zebra to highlight areas of your image that represent specific

video levels on a waveform, for example setting the zebra for 50% means you can

visually identify which regions of your image will appear at approximately 50% on a

waveform scope.

Focus Peaking and Focus Assist

Focus peaking and focus assist settings give you powerful tools to help focus your images fast.

Focus peaking displays edge lines on the sharpest areas of the image. Sensitivity settings let

you change how strong the lines are.

Change the sensitivity settings by tapping the left and right arrows or drag the slider left or

right. Sensitivity levels include ‘low’, ‘medium’ or ‘high’. In images with lots of detail and high

contrast, the lines can be distracting, so in these conditions you can select ’low’ or ‘medium’.

Alternatively, for low contrast shots with less detail, select ‘high’ so the lines are stronger and

easier to see.

13Changing Settings

Edge lines are extremely effective. They can be so pronounced that you can even monitor the

depth of your focal plane, plus watch it move closer or further into your shot as you adjust your

camera’s focus ring. Changing the color of the edge lines can also make them easier to see in

conditions where their color may match the image. If you find lines are too visually intrusive, you

can select ‘peak’ levels instead. You can change the color of the lines, or switch to using peak

levels via the ‘monitor’ tab in the menu.

Guides

The frame guides feature provides aspect ratio overlays for various cinema, television and

online standards. With guides selected, tap the left or right arrows, or drag the slider icon left or

right to select your frame guide.

The following frame guides are supported:

2.40:1, 2.39:1 and 2.35:1

Displays the broad widescreen aspect ratio compatible with anamorphic or flat widescreen

cinema presentation. The three widescreen settings differ slightly based on the changing cinema

standards over time. 2.39:1 is one of the most prominent standards in use today.

2:1

Displays a ratio slightly wider than 16:9 but not as wide as 2.35:1.

1.85:1

Displays another common flat widescreen cinema aspect ratio. This ratio is slightly wider than

HDTV, but not as wide as 2.39:1.

14:9

Displays a 14:9 aspect ratio used by some television broadcasters as a compromise between 16:9

and 4:3 television sets. Ideally, both 16:9 and 4:3 footage remains legible when center cropped to

fit 14:9. You can use this as a compositional guide if you know your project may be broadcast by a

television station that uses 14:9 cropping.

4:3

Displays the 4:3 aspect ratio compatible with SD television screens, or to help frame shots when

using 2x anamorphic adapters.

2.40:1 frame guides are useful for framing shots to suit

a popular flat widescreen cinema format.

14Changing Settings

Grids

Your video assist features three types of framing assistance.

Thirds Thirds are an extremely powerful tool to help compose your shots with two

vertical and horizontal lines placed in each third of the image.

The human eye typically looks for action near the points where the lines

intersect, so it’s helpful to frame key points of interest in these zones.

Crosshairs The ‘crosshairs’ setting places a crosshair in the center of the frame.

Like thirds, the crosshairs is a very useful compositional tool, making it easy to

frame the subject of a shot in the very center of a frame.

Center Dot The ‘center dot’ setting places a dot in the center of the frame. This works in

exactly the same way as the ‘crosshair’ setting, albeit with a smaller overlay

that you may find less intrusive.

You can enable a combination of ‘thirds’ and ‘crosshairs’ or ‘thirds’ and ‘center

dot’ by tapping both options in the ‘grids’ menu. ‘Crosshairs’ and ‘center dot’

cannot be selected together.

TIP An actor’s eyeline is commonly framed along the top third of the screen, so you

can use the top horizontal third to guide your framing. Thirds are also useful to maintain

framing consistency between shots.

False Color

The false color feature displays color overlays on your image that represent exposure values.

The color values correspond to optimum exposure settings, for example pink for lighter skin

tones and green for 38.4% middle grey. False color is also helpful to know when shadows and

highlights are near clipping or clipping.

With a range of tonal values on the LCD at once, this gives you a broader overview of

your exposure which you can use to refine lighting on set, or make exposure changes

to compensate.

The following chart shows how the colors correspond to specific tonal values.

15Changing Settings

False Color Chart

Your video assist also features controls to adjust the LCD brightness, contrast and saturation.

These controls can be accessed via the ‘monitor overlay’ icon.

Contrast

Increases or decreases the range between the bright and dark areas of

the image. High contrast can reveal detail and depth in the image, and

low contrast can make the image appear soft and flat.

Brightness

Adjusts the general brightness of the LCD. For example, if you are

outside in bright conditions, increase the LCD brightness to make it

easier to view. Brightness values will be displayed in nits on 12G models.

Saturation

Move the slider to increase or decrease the amount of color in your

displayed image.

All settings will be remembered when the unit is powered off. It’s also worth mentioning that

any changes to these settings will affect the image displayed on the LCD, but not your

recorded video.

Auto Dim

Blackmagic Video Assist 12G HDR can display up to 2,500 nits in brightness. To protect the unit

when operating it at high temperatures, the auto dim feature will activate, lowering the

brightness of the display. The brightness level will steadily decrease as the video assist

operating temperature continues to increase. If the unit temperature decreases, the brightness

level will return to the set value.

For example, if your video assist brightness is set to 2,500 nits and you are using it in direct

sunlight on a hot day, the video assist’s temperature will increase.

Once the unit’s operating temperature exceeds approximately 46°C, an alert will appear in the

upper toolbar’s monitor overlay icon.

16Changing Settings

This alert lets you know that you are near the temperature limit for that screen brightness value.

From here you have two options:

Option 1 – Lower the screen brightness manually

Tap on the alert to reveal the brightness slider. The slider control will display the current highest

nit value available. Drag the slider to the left to reduce the value. The temperature alert will

disappear once the unit temperature decreases.

Option 2 – Use the automatic dim feature

Once the temperature reaches the limit, the screen will automatically dim. The auto dim feature

will activate to protect your unit from overheating. As the video assist’s temperature increases,

the brightness level will steadily decrease. If the unit temperature decreases, the brightness level

will increase, eventually returning to the value you set.

Codec

The codec indicator displays the currently selected codec. Tap the codec icon to select which

codec and quality you want to use.

Blackmagic Video Assist 12G HDR codec options

17Changing Settings

Blackmagic Video Assist 3G codec options

Supported Codecs

ProRes codecs are recorded as QuickTime files. DNxHD and DNxHR files can be recorded as

QuickTime or native MXF files where MXF appears in the codec name. Refer to the following

table for more details regarding the codec options.

Blackmagic

Video Assist 3G

Blackmagic

Video Assist 12G HDR

Codecs Bit Depth Bit Depth

ProRes 422 HQ 10 10

ProRes 422 10 10

ProRes 422 LT 10 10

ProRes Proxy 10 10

DNxHD 220x 8 –

DNxHD 145 8 –

DNxHD 45 8 –

DNxHD 220x MXF 8 –

DNxHD 145 MXF 8 –

DNxHD 45 MXF 8 –

DNxHR HQX – 10

DNxHR SQ – 8

DNxHR LB – 8

DNxHR HQX MXF – 10

DNxHR SQ MXF – 8

DNxHR LB MXF – 8

18Changing Settings

Blackmagic

Video Assist 3G

Blackmagic

Video Assist 12G HDR

Codecs Bit Depth Bit Depth

Blackmagic RAW 3:1 – 12

Blackmagic RAW 5:1 – 12

Blackmagic RAW 8:1 – 12

Blackmagic RAW 12:1 – 12

Blackmagic RAW Q0 – 12

Blackmagic RAW Q5 – 12

Format

Input video resolution and frame rate is displayed in the ‘format’ section of the upper toolbar.

Forexample, 2160p29.97, 2160p25, 1080p59.94, etc.

The following video input and output formats are supported:

SDI Input and Output

SD Video Standards 525i59.94NTSC, 625i50PAL

HD Video Standards 720p50, 720p59.94, 720p60

1080p23.98, 1080p24, 1080p25, 1080p29.97, 1080p30,

1080p50, 1080p59.94, 1080p60

1080PsF23.98, 1080PsF24, 1080PsF25, 1080PsF29.97,

1080PsF30 1080i50, 1080i59.94, 1080i60

2K Video Standards Blackmagic Video Assist 12G HDR models:

2Kp23.98DCI, 2Kp24DCI, 2Kp25DCI

2KPsF23.98DCI, 2KPsF24DCI, 2KPsF25DCI

Ultra HD Video Standards Blackmagic Video Assist 12G HDR models:

2160p23.98, 2160p24, 2160p25, 2160p29.97, 2160p30

2160p50, 2160p59.94, 2160p60

4K Video Standards Blackmagic Video Assist 12G HDR models:

4Kp23.98 DCI, 4Kp24 DCI, 4Kp25 DCI

19Changing Settings

HDMI Input and Output

SD Video Standards 525i59.94 NTSC, 625i50 PAL

HD Video Standards 720p50, 720p59.94, 720p60

1080p23.98, 1080p24, 1080p25, 1080p29.97, 1080p30,

1080p50, 1080p59.94, 1080p60

1080i50, 1080i59.94, 1080i60

Ultra HD Video Standards Blackmagic Video Assist 12G HDR models:

2160p23.98, 2160p24, 2160p25, 2160p29.97, 2160p30

2160p50, 2160p59.94, 2160p60

4K Video Standards Blackmagic Video Assist 12G HDR models:

4Kp23.98DCI, 4Kp24DCI, 4Kp25DCI

Timecode

During recording or playback, the timecode view at the top of the display will update to show

you the current time of your clip. Select between timeline or clip timecode, or even SMPTE.

Simply tap the timecode display to toggle between SMPTE and clip timecode.

SMPTE timecode mode is indicated by a ‘tc’ icon to the right.

The time counter displays the timeline timecode.

The timecode display will appear red while the unit is recording

in both timecode and time counter modes.

If your source doesn’t have a valid timecode, the timecode for

each recording will begin at 00:00:00:00.

External timecode input is indicated by a ‘ext’ icon to the right.

20Changing Settings

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